| Musical Style: Heavy Metal | Produced By: |
| Record Label: Independent | Country Of Origin: USA |
| Year Released: 2025 | Artist Website: Prodigal |
| Tracks: 11 | Rating: 75% |
| Running Time: |
Independent sophomore Prodigal album Welcome (To The End Of Time) has some positives, including a fair share of choice material, eye catching cover art and impressive band performance. However, it suffers from messy production and musical inconsistency. The March of 2025 released work trends similar musical territory as the Phoenix, Arizona based groups summer of 2020 debut full length Are You Ready! (also independent) with a groundwork of traditional heavy metal fused with intermittent eighties derivative AOR and ballad like moments.
One cannot question the group’s pedigree. Lead vocalist Mark Fekete previously was part of Spokane, Washington based Christian metal band Amethyst to include Alter Bridge and Slash touring guitarist Myles Kennedy, while lead guitarist Jim Maropoulos spent the eighties as a member of White Foxx with Cinderella guitarist Jeff LeBar. Rounding out the Prodigal lineup is rhythm guitarist Rigoberto Reyes, bassist Scott Spangle, drummer Les Townsend and backing vocalist Brandy Spangle.
Nor its faith in that the group delivers (per its press material) ‘a message of hope, love, and salvation to a world that needs to hear something refreshing and uplifting!’ Repeat listen to Welcome (To The End Of Time) reveals Prodigal correspondingly forthright and straightforward in terms of lyrically expressing its faith.
Album gets to a strong start with its classic metal infused title track. “Welcome (To The End Of Time)” pillages its six minutes to staggering bass and irrefutable guitar riffs, setting a tone not for the faint of heart as Fekete unveils his walk a fine line between Alice Cooper and Ozzy tinged vocals and darker tincturing exudes of the foreboding. Maropoulos impresses with his bristling Dee Harrington (Saint) style lead guitar. Lyric snippet:
The clock is ticking, time to make a choice
God is calling listen to his voice
Sign of the times right before your eyes
There’s wars over here and there’s wars over there
The world is in turmoil there’s killing everywhere
Even our children are falling down
There’s evil all around and its comin’ to your town
Time is slowly running out (repeat)
Welcome to the end of time
Get your front row tickets to the end of time
“Stand Up And Fight” carries over the straightforward heavy metal demeanor. Also at six minutes, song slows to a venturesome mid-tempo groove with a similar unreserved bass line - specifying the work of Scott Spangle - while preserving the combative instincts, reinforcing the aggressive backing vocals. Lone misgiving is that the continuously repeated ‘stand up and fight’ refrain borders on the repetitious.
Two songs in and it cannot be denied the murky production, pinpointing a muddy low end preventing a clean mix of drums and rhythm guitar not instilled with needed crisp edge and bite.
“In The Beginning” represents a seven-minute AOR style ballad. It proves a good one, leveraged by piano, keyboards and layered backing vocals but not forsaking melodic hard rock guitars and substantial melody to go in hand. Significant portions to the final minutes are instrumental, which lends a pleasing progressive edge. Lyric snippet:
In the beginning
He created all the earth
He died for our sins
So that we could live forever
He said Father forgive them
For they no not what they do
As they nailed Him to the cross
And watched Him die
Back to heavier territory with “A.S.K.”, a keyed up drubber with a straight from the gate flickering mentality found in galloping riffs and caustic vocal signatures. Hooks are not to be denied, nor are the old school classic power metal sensibilities akin to Jacobs Dream. Tempo slows to a furious snarl for the scathing instrumental moments in which guitar leads are scalding as it gets.
“The Answer” trends melodic heavy metal. It begins to a preacher voice over - ‘revelation is more powerful than reason’ - prior to detonating to a booming low end and slamming rhythms to match. Manner in which refrain ensnares with blithesome facilities brings to mind Daniel Band. Lyric snippet:
I see the people on the streets
So alone in misery
Searching for the answers to this life
Not knowing who to trust or follow
It’s a revelation,
The answers written in black and red
It’s the end of times
The Messiah has risen from the dead
“Alone” takes a ballad approach akin to “In The Beginning” but in a moodier and more relaxed format. Piano, bass and orchestration play foremost roles, with distant rhythm guitar making brief appearance for the melancholic refrain and lead guitar taking center stage for majority of the final two minutes. Interestingly, at the mid-point song makes a brief about face for the melody to “Amazing Grace” prior to returning to course.
Prodigal puts its creativity on display for funk driven hard rocker “Sinners And Saints”. With a vast bass line founded low end, song courses to metal edge funk guitars and groove flavored propensities as bounding hooks cement with encircling vocal melodies. As much as I take to “Sinners And Saints” - it rates with my choice tracks - production is a mess as the muddy temper and fluttering ambiences distracts from the listening experience. Lyric snippet:
What you see is what you get
What are you looking for?
Where are you going?
Who you know?
Calling all people around the world
Calling all man, woman, boy and girl
Do you see it’s not an illusion
Do you know this isn’t a game?
Calling all sinners and saints
“Runaway” finds Prodigal at its aggressive best: rapid-fire double bass echoes of power metal, while the-in-and-out of the mix rhythm guitar leans towards hard rock. Tempo hyper accelerates as the song hits hard and fast, albeit not without emphasizing catchy hooks – the sassy lead vocals work well in this regard - not to mention a darker register found in the stern ‘runaway’ backing vocals.
Ensuing is a re-mastered version to the Are You Ready! track “The Road Once Traveled”. It remains a ‘stylish ballad (that is) easy going and relaxed to delicately woven guitars but also profound to the rebounding presence of rhythm guitar’ (quoting my 70% review). Placed alongside I hear a slightly cleaner mix allowing a sound that while more polished does not significantly differ from the original. In no way do I intend to be unfair, but with the track listing already including two ballads, I would have rather heard one of the better Are You Ready! heavy hitters instead such as the Ozzy influenced “He Loves You”, aptly entitled “The Darkness” and fiery “Cold World” had been included instead.
Album closes to two songs in “Questions” and “Get Ready” I find a step-down. Former is a medium good double kick drum driven hard rocker emanating of the tempestuous and latter a short but fleet mauler revealing a speed based acumen. By no means is either bad and each is well performed, but missing are the prompt hooks and clever nuances distinctive to albums better material- in other words not skip worthy but a bit plain all the same.
Welcome (To The End Of Time) is not without strengths in terms of choice material (when at its best) and top-notch band performance (I take particularly to vocals and guitar work). That said execution is sloppy in terms of muddy production and uneven track listing. The current hard music scene is innate to independently released albums with strong production - noting those from Saint, Bride, Under The Blood and others - so it is disappointing to see Prodigal not up to standard in such regard. Perhaps if given time and experience production will turn into a strong point. Based upon the potential shown here, I look forward to hearing more from this talented Phoenix, Arizona based group.
Review by Andrew Rockwell
Track Listing: “Welcome (To The End Of Time)” (5:50), “Stand Up And Fight!” (5:45), “In The Beginning” (6:48), “A.S.K.” (5:19), “The Answer” (4:53), “Alone” (5:32), “Sinners And Saints” (4:36), “Runaway” (4:33), “The Road Once Traveled: (4:55), “Questions” (5:23), “Get Ready” (3:20)
Musicians
Mark Fekete - Lead Vocals, Guitar & Keyboards
Jim Maropoulos - Lead Guitar
Rigoberto Reyes - Rhythm Guitar
Scott Spangle - Bass
Les Townsend - Drums
Brandy Spangle - Backing Vocals
